This publication presents information on persons in custody and community-based corrections. The statistics are derived from information provided to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) from administrative records held by corrective services agencies in each state and territory, and from the Australian Government Attorney-General's Department for details on federal prisoners. Details are provided for each state and territory on numbers and imprisonment rates by type of custody (i.e. open or secure custody or periodic detention). Information is also presented on prisoner numbers by legal status (sentenced or unsentenced) for all prisoners and for Indigenous prisoners, together with the number of sentenced receptions into custody and the number of federal prisoners.

The ABS acknowledges the valuable contribution of the Board of Management and the Advisory Group of the National Corrective Services Statistics Unit as well as the staff of the various agencies that provide the statistics that are presented in this publication.

CHANGES IN THIS ISSUE

Rates for Indigenous prisoners have been reintroduced following the release of experimental Indigenous population estimates and projections benchmarked on the 2001 Census of Population and Housing. These rates, previously calculated from estimates and projections based on the 1996 Census of Population and Housing, had been discontinued pending release of the new population data. In addition to presenting Indigenous imprisonment rates for the current quarter, this publication includes revised rates for the period 2002 to 2004. (See Explanatory Notes, paragraphs 26-29).

Ratios of Indigenous to non-Indigenous imprisonment rates are not produced from this data. Users who require this information are referred to Prisoners in Australia 2004 (cat. no. 4517.0), where rates and ratios (including age standardised results) are presented in Table 3.

FURTHER INFORMATION

More information about ABS activities in the field of crime and justice statistics is available from the Crime and Justice theme page on the ABS web site. Details of other ABS publications relating to Crime and Justice statistics can be found in paragraphs 36-37 of the Explanatory Notes.

INQUIRIES

For further information about these and related statistics, contact the National Information and Referral Service on 1300 135 070 or Marika Woodberry on Melbourne (03) 9615 7601.

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

NUMBER OF PRISONERS

PERSONS IN PRISON CUSTODY, Average daily number per month

The average daily number of prisoners in Australia in the March quarter 2005 was 24,152, an increase of 336 (1%) on the December quarter 2004 and 1,371 (6%) on the March quarter 2004. These increases reflect the upward trend of the annual average daily prisoner numbers.

RATES PER 100,000 ADULTS

AVERAGE DAILY IMPRISONMENT RATE (a)

Nationally, the average daily imprisonment rate was 156 prisoners per 100,000 adult population during the March quarter 2005, an increase of 4% since the March quarter 2004 (149 prisoners). The Northern Territory had the highest imprisonment rate (566 prisoners per 100,000 adult population), followed by Western Australia (230) and Queensland (177). The Australian Capital Territory (including Australian Capital Territory prisoners held in New South Wales prisons) and Victoria had the lowest imprisonment rates (72 and 91 prisoners per 100,000 adults respectively).

Of all states and territories, the largest proportional increase (14%) in imprisonment rates since the March quarter 2004 was recorded in Tasmania. The next highest increase was Western Australia (13%), followed by Northern Territory (8%). Victoria and the Australian Capital Territory recorded a decrease in imprisonment rates (2%) over the same period.

SEX

Of the average daily number of full-time prisoners in Australia in the March quarter 2005, 22,491 (93%) were male and 1,660 (7%) were female. The average daily imprisonment rate for males was 295 prisoners per 100,000 adult male population. The average daily imprisonment rate for females was 21 prisoners per 100,000 adult female population. Males were 14 times more likely to be in prison than females.

INDIGENOUS PRISONERS

INDIGENOUS PERSONS IMPRISONMENT RATE (a)

In the March quarter 2005 there were 5,606 Indigenous adult prisoners in Australia. Of these, 5,116 (91%) were men and 490 (9%) were women. Almost 80% of the total Indigenous prisoner population were in the three states New South Wales (1,762 persons), Western Australia (1,395) and Queensland (1,285).

The national rate of imprisonment for Indigenous people in the March quarter 2005 was 2,004 per 100,000 adult Indigenous population, an increase of 9% since the March quarter 2004 and an increase of 2% since the December quarter 2004.

The highest rate of imprisonment for Indigenous prisoners was recorded in Western Australia (3,471 Indigenous prisoners per 100,000 adult Indigenous population), followed by New South Wales (2,211).

INDIGENOUS IMPRISONMENT RATE (a)

Of all states and territories, the largest proportional increase (24%) in the rate of imprisonment of Indigenous people since the March quarter 2004 was recorded in Western Australia. The next highest increase was in South Australia (13%), followed by New South Wales (9%).

Age standardised imprisonment rates in the 2004 National Prisoner Census take into account the different age profiles of the Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations. The national rate of imprisonment of Indigenous people at June 2004 was 11 times higher than the rate for non-Indigenous people. For further information comparing rates of imprisonment among Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, refer to Prisoners in Australia 2004 (cat. no. 4517.0).

TYPE OF FULL-TIME CUSTODY

The average daily number of prisoners in secure prison custody in the March quarter 2005 was 17,291 (72% of prisoners in full-time custody). The remaining prisoners were held in open prison custody. Nationally, the proportions of prisoners held in secure and open prison custody have remained stable over the past three years.

In the March quarter 2005, all prisoners held in full-time custody in the Australian Capital Territory were in secure custody. In other states and territories, the highest proportions of prisoners held in secure full-time prison custody were recorded in Victoria (91%) and South Australia (89%). The proportion of prisoners in secure full-time custody was lowest in New South Wales (including Australian Capital Territory prisoners held in New South Wales prisons) at 53%.

LEGAL STATUS

The average of the number of prisoners in full-time custody on the first day of each of the three months in the March quarter 2005 was 24,078. Of these, the average number of unsentenced prisoners was 5,246 (22%). The Australian Capital Territory (including Australian Capital Territory prisoners held in New South Wales prisons) and South Australia had the highest proportions of unsentenced prisoners (38% and 34% respectively). The lowest proportion of unsentenced prisoners was recorded in Western Australia (16%).

PERSONS IN PRISON CUSTODY, Proportion unsentenced per month

SENTENCED RECEPTIONS

There were 6,007 sentenced receptions into full-time custody in Australia in the March quarter 2005. The number of sentenced receptions decreased by 366 (6%) since the December quarter 2004, and increased by 354 (6%) since the March quarter 2004.

PERIODIC DETENTION

Periodic detention is a form of custody only used in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. During the March quarter 2005 there was an average daily number of 798 persons in New South Wales and 98 persons in the Australian Capital Territory held in periodic detention. The rate of imprisonment for periodic detention increased in the Australian Capital Territory by 10% and in New South Wales by 9% between the March quarters 2004 and 2005. In the March quarter 2005, 59% of all persons in custody (full-time and periodic detention) in the Australian Capital Territory were in periodic detention. In contrast, 8% of all persons in custody in New South Wales were in periodic detention.

FEDERAL PRISONERS

In the March quarter 2005, there were 661 federal prisoners in Australia, a decrease of 6 (1%) since the March quarter 2004. Of the federal prisoners, more than half were sentenced in New South Wales.

PERSONS IN COMMUNITY-BASED CORRECTIONS

In the March quarter 2005, there were 52,227 persons in community-based corrections in Australia, an increase of 4% (2,055 persons) since the March quarter 2004.

Rates per 100,000 adults

Nationally, the rate of persons in community-based corrections was 337 persons per 100,000 adult population for the March quarter 2005. This was an increase of 3% since the March quarter 2004 (329 persons per 100,000 adults). The largest increases were in New South Wales and Western Australia (each 6%), followed by Tasmania (5%). South Australia recorded the largest proportional decrease (2%).

COMMUNITY-BASED CORRECTIONS RATE (a)

In the March quarter 2005, the male rate of participation in community-based corrections was 561 per 100,000 adult male population in comparison to 120 females per 100,000 adult female population. Males were five times more likely to be in community-based corrections than females.